We are fast coming up on Christmas and being completely honest, my first two posts had little to nothing to do with Christmas. For my third post, I wanted to write about something a little more festive, but it would be a little boring to just talk about something Christmas related that everyone has heard of; so instead of doing a Top 10 list of my favorite Christmas Carols or talking about my favorite Christmas movie, I wanted to breakdown one of my favorite lesser known Christmas songs and really examine what about the song really resonates with me on a personal level. The song I am pleased to share with you all is called, “I Celebrate the Day,” by Relient K. If you have never heard of this song before or else need a refresher, I highly encourage you to click the highlighted song link and give it a listen before reading on.
The Power of Simplicity in Music
Going into this breakdown, you all should know that I am in no way and expert in music theory so take everything I am about to say with a grain of salt because there is definitely the chance that I could be misinterpreting the themes and ideas the song is trying to convey. With that little disclaimer out of the way, the first thing I am drawn to upon listening to this song is the driving repeated two note phrase which intros the piece. This repeated musical phrase really frames this song as a Christmas song by calling to mind memories of sleigh bell rhythms that are common in Christmas songs like “Sleigh Ride,” or “Jingle Bells.” This repeated phrase also adds a bit of levity and fun to what otherwise is a fairly serious and somewhat subdued sounding song. These simple two repeated notes also provide the song a sense of grounding as the song always transitions back to this phrase after a chorus or bridge. It is as if the song is beckoning its listener to come back to a familiar and solid place after getting wrapped up in the much more upbeat and exciting chorus. I could continue to dwell on this phrase for quite a while longer, but there is much more to explore in this song besides its simple two note repeated motif.
Another thing that strikes me about “I Celebrate the Day,” is the way the music builds slowly to a peak before settling back into a grounded and easily digestible musical phrase. To me, this musical idea perfectly encapsulates the true essence of the Christmas season. Christmas should be a time of excitement and celebration, but at its heart, it should really be about the simple things that truly matter, like friends, family, hope, and unity. It is rare to find a Christmas song that genuinely captures the dual essence of the holidays as usually, holiday songs emphasize either the ‘fun’ aspects of the time or the ‘familial heart’ of the holiday. This song is not mired in the pomp and circumstance of Christmas Classics like, “Let It Snow,” or “All I Want for Christmas is You,” and yet it does not feel overly sentimental or carol-like as is the case for songs like “White Christmas,” or “O Holy Night.” It rides a fine line on the middle ground and for me that concentrates the sincerity of the song. When the emotion of the music connects with the message of the lyrics, something really special is born.
Lyrics that Matter
I have already wrote a fair amount about, “I Celebrate the Day,” without having once talked about the power of the lyrics. Allow me now to rectify this grave mistake by breaking down the song’s lyrics and expanding upon the powerful message they communicate.
And with this Christmas wish is missed
The point I could convey
If only I could find the words to say to let You know how much You've touched my life
Because here is where You're finding me, in the exact same place as New Year's eve
And from a lack of my persistency
We're less than half as close as I want to be
The first verse of the song starts with an acknowledgement that the singer feels he has really missed the point of Christmas. He sings that words fail to properly convey what Christmas is really about, and that he is discouraged because though the message of Christmas is something that has powerfully touched his life, he feels he seemingly has not been changed by that wonderful truth because he finds himself in the exact same place as he did on New Year’s Eve, the time where people usually resolve to better themselves and as a result of his lack of persistence, he is not anywhere near the person he wants to be.
This honestly seems like a pretty depressing way to open a Christmas song, but why I find these lyrics so powerful is they cut away at all the superficiality that pops up around the holiday season. “Why do we only remember family, generosity, kindness, and self-sacrifice during the holidays, but as soon as New Years is over, we fail to continue to keep that spirit with us?” That is what this verse is trying to get at. The feelings we get at Christmas time should not be reserved only for Christmas and we should reflect and really consider if this season has really touched our lives or if we are just going through the motions.
And the first time
That You opened Your eyes did You realize that You would be my Savior
And the first breath that left Your lips
Did You know that it would change this world forever
The chorus identifies what the singer truly believes is centrally important about Christmas, and questions the absurdity that God would willingly choose to be born as a baby, solely so that he could grow into a man who would be his savior and change the world. Anyone who listens to these lyrics knows how absurd it is to believe you could know what you were born to do from the first minute your mother gave birth to you, but somehow despite being born as an innocent little child, God’s ultimate plan was already set to use this child to change the world. What the singer believes is that despite how crazy this story sounds, he believes this act to be of utmost importance.
And so this Christmas I'll compare the things I felt in prior years
To what this midnight made so clear
That You have come to meet me here
The central theme of this verse is that upon reflecting on what Christmas has meant to him in the past, the singer now understands that the reason for God coming down and becoming Christ, the man who would save the world, is so that he could meet with him, personally and intimately. The singer believes that God is not just an idea or an impersonal force, but a person who condescended from his domain so that he could have a personal relationship with him. God did not just come so that he could save or change the world, he came down because he deeply cared and valued people as individuals. To God, the singer knows he is not some faceless blob in a sea of other people. He is uniquely and specially valued by God.
To look back and think that
This baby would one day save me
In the hope that what You did
That you were born so I might really live
To look back and think that
This baby would one day save me
The bridge is one of the most powerful parts of the song as it stands as the singer’s confirmation that despite how ridiculous the story of Christmas may sound, he chooses to believe and reflect on this story and in light of it, be freed of the burdens, pain, pressures, and expectations that life and society have placed on him. When he thinks about how Christ was born as a baby to save him, and to have a personal relationship with him, he finds this idea so freeing that it allows him to really live, to live his life without fear of shame or that he will make a wrong decision or that he will do something he cannot take back. Christ came down to take all of our pain, shortcomings, and insecurities away. That is what the singer wants to uphold as the true heart of what Christmas is. This is a glorious and joyful thing, but now the only thing left to address is how Jesus planned on doing this? The answer to that question is the reason the singer can sing, “I Celebrate the Day.”
And I, I celebrate the day
That You were born to die
So I could one day pray for You to save my life
The ending tag is the answer to the question I just posed. How God plan to take away all our pain, shortcomings, and insecurities away and why should we celebrate Christmas? The singer declares with boldness and finality that the reason he celebrates this day and the reason Christmas is so important is that on Christmas, Christ came down into the world so that one day he would die and take on all of the sins and failures of the world upon himself, so that we would no longer be slaves to the darkness in this world. These words communicate that Christmas is worthy of celebration and remembrance because it was on that day that God would choose to be born as a man so that he could die and take away all of the burdens of those who would pray and desire to be free of them.
When the pensive yet hopeful music combines with the powerful yet simple lyrics, a powerfully reflective Christmas song is born. I hope that if you had not heard of this song before, that this would now be a new Christmas Classic to add to your playlists. It is my sincerest wish that this musical breakdown helped make this Christmas season a little more special.
12 Days of Christmas, Day 3: Getting Ready to, "Celebrate the Day"